Chapter 7: Raise

Ming Ci’s vision was obscured by the spreading crimson, unable to see Chang Zijin, only hearing the clatter of the folding knife hitting the ground, and the hurried footsteps of the other party running outside.

The monster was instantly enraged, emitting an indescribable terrifying roar.

It forcefully expanded its soft limbs, attempting to completely protect its host while also unable to resist wriggling towards the fleeing human.

It wanted to devour that bad human, fur, bones, flesh, organs, not a single drop would be left!

“Devour, devour, bad human…”

Sharp screams mingled with human speech, each syllable exuding a fierce intent to kill, like boiling water bubbling into Ming Ci’s ears.

His brain felt as if it had been pierced by thorns, the screams and buzzing piercing through his eardrums, making Ming Ci dizzy and unable to help but cover his ears with both hands.

“Stop!” He shouted desperately, his voice almost breaking, “Stop!”

The wriggling crimson limbs on the ground suddenly halted in unison.

Ming Ci felt dizzy and his vision blurred, everything before him was a blurry and intense red, his body sinking into the sticky warmth of the “mud”.

His heart pounded with fear, instinctively afraid of the monster, but he could only forcibly restrain his fear and desperately try to stop it, “No more screaming, stop it, come back!”

The screams abruptly stopped, the viscous crimson that had surged to the door turned back towards Ming Ci’s feet.

“Bad human, ran away, want to eat…” Its words were incredibly sinister and cold, like the touch of death caressing his earlobe, “Ming Ci… bad human, I want to… devour…”

Ming Ci leaned back against its limbs, fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead, his voice hoarse as he said, “No eating, you stop, don’t go crazy, I… I’ll give you.”

Before he finished speaking, he struggled to crawl forward, reaching for the folding knife, and swiftly and viciously cut his palm.

The warm blood gushed out from the wound in an instant, gathering into a stream, sliding down his pale fingers and falling to the ground.

“Eat, monster.”

Ming Ci lay in the excited wriggling crimson, filled with loathing, his voice weary and soft.

“Eat, I am your host, your nest, your feeder. You are not allowed to eat others.”

·

Chang Zijin ran down the dark staircase, his heart pounding like a drum, panting heavily, not daring to stop for a moment.

He was in a state of panic, and when he rushed out of the corridor, he collided with a resident, causing the person to fall.

“Hey, what are you doing?”

The resident who was bumped into grabbed Chang Zijin, wanting an explanation, but he pushed the person away fiercely, “Get lost! Leave me alone!”

F*ck! He’s been seen!

Blood, he must be covered in blood, he’s been discovered, the police will definitely come to arrest him!

What to do, what to do, what to do?!

Chang Zijin’s mind was in chaos, the only thing he could think of was to call his big brother.

He stumbled into the green bushes, huddled in the dark corner, took out his phone, his fingers trembling as he dialed several times, finally getting through to Boss Wu.

“A’Jin, are you done?”

Chang Zijin heard the familiar voice, and his panicked emotions eased slightly, and he blurted out, “Big brother, I… I killed someone, I stabbed that kid Ming Ci to death!”

“What? You—”

“It wasn’t intentional! He insisted on provoking me, and I accidentally… accidentally stabbed him, he bled a lot, he definitely won’t survive. Big brother, I was doing it for you, you have to find a way to save me!”

“You idiot, A’Jin! How could you actually—”

On the other end of the phone, Boss Wu’s voice abruptly stopped, he walked a few steps quickly, avoiding the crowd, and continued in a low voice, “Forget it, A’Jin, it’s too late to say all this now. A’Jin, I need to know, are you sure you stabbed Ming Ci to death? Where are you now? Are you at his house?”

“I… I ran out, I’m in the neighborhood.” Chang Zijin’s Adam’s apple rolled, he swallowed saliva, “I don’t know if he’s dead now, but he lost too much blood, he definitely won’t make it.”

“Did anyone see you running out of his house?”

At this moment, Chang Zijin realized that he shouldn’t have run out like this, he should have stayed at the scene and destroyed the evidence.

“Yes, I just bumped into someone.”

“You…” Boss Wu took a deep breath, his voice deep, “Alright, A’Jin, it’s come to this, you can’t run away. If you want to get a lighter sentence, go back to his house now, see if he’s still breathing, if he is, call an ambulance immediately. If he’s not breathing, call the police and turn yourself in, confessing might reduce your sentence.”

After saying this, the call ended.

Chang Zijin gripped his phone, panting heavily, his eyes nervously darting around, and suddenly realized that his hands were not covered in blood.

He was stunned, quickly touching his face and clothes. Unexpectedly, there was not a trace of blood on him.

What’s going on?

Ming Ci had bled so much, how could it be possible that none of it had splattered onto him?

Chang Zijin’s mind was in turmoil. Thinking about Boss Wu’s words, after hesitating for more than ten seconds, he gritted his teeth and turned back to run.

Thud, thud, thud…

The hurried footsteps echoed in the dim corridor.

The closer he got, the more nervous Chang Zijin became. In the last few steps, he involuntarily slowed down his pace until he stopped at the door of 502.

Damn it, why is the door locked!

Chang Zijin gripped the doorknob, trying to force it open, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t twist it open, sweating profusely with anxiety.

What’s even worse was that the neighbor next door heard the commotion and suddenly opened the door to look at him.

“Who are you?” The man next door had a cigarette in his mouth, asking in a muffled voice, “Looking for Ming Hui or Ming Ci?”

Chang Zijin’s nerves were stretched tight, his heart pounding, but his face was full of hostility as he shouted, “None of your goddamn business!”

The irritable neighbor spat out the cigarette, raising his voice, “What are you swearing for? You’ve got quite the temper.”

If it were any other time, Chang Zijin would have definitely fought with this person without saying a word, but now he was in a panic, just wanting to quickly confirm whether Ming Ci was dead or not.

“Tch.”

The man scoffed softly, his gaze passing over Chang Zijin, looking toward the end of the hallway, and shouted, neither loud nor soft, “Ming Ci.”

Ming Ci?

Chang Zijin turned his stiff neck, only to see a slender figure emerge from the dim shadows, stopping a couple of steps away.

The person was wearing a white T-shirt and jeans, completely clean from head to toe. His fair and handsome face showed little expression, appearing cold and calm.

This was exactly the same as Ming Ci from half an hour ago!

Chang Zijin’s brain stopped, staring at Ming Ci in disbelief, “You, you, you’re not…”

Ming Ci first glanced at the neighbor politely, calling out, “Uncle Tan.”

Then he turned his gaze to Chang Zijin, calmly saying, “So you’re here, I just went to look for you.”

No, no, this wasn’t right ah!

He clearly stabbed Ming Ci, causing blood to cover the floor. How could the other person appear here fine?

And he even came looking for him?!

Chang Zijin couldn’t understand at all. Various ghost stories he had read flashed through his mind, and the dim and obscure light, as well as the other person’s white face, all became eerie and terrifying.

“You…” He backed away to the wall, chillingly spitting out a sentence, “Are you human or ghost?”

Ming Ci walked up to him. “You broke my laptop. You need to compensate me.”

“What about your wound? Didn’t I stab you to death? There was so much blood!”

Chang Zijin had nowhere to hide, his heart pounding wildly. He turned to the neighbor man and couldn’t help but shout, “Look at him! I clearly stabbed him to death! How could he be fine?! This isn’t right!”

The man looked at him as if he was crazy, sneering, “Haha, you stabbed Ming Ci to death, and now he’s come back as a ghost to find you.”

Ming Ci stared straight at him. “You broke my laptop, so you have to compensate me. Pretending to be crazy won’t work.”

A bone-chilling coldness crept up from his feet, making Chang Zijin tremble all over, cold sweat pouring down his back.

He suddenly pushed Ming Ci away and scrambled into the corridor, shouting in terror, “It wasn’t me! Don’t look for me… if you want to find someone, find Old Wu, he told me to teach you a lesson… don’t find me!”

The terrified screams echoed in the corridor.

The neighbor crossed his arms, frowning. “Ming Ci, who was that person?”

Ming Ci opened the door while replying, “My dad’s creditor, came to collect debt. After breaking my laptop, he ran away.”

“Oh, he said he stabbed you to death. What’s going on?”

“I don’t know.” Ming Ci paused, quietly clenching the scarred hand, and said softly, “Probably delusional, mentally ill.”

Creak…

The iron door closed tightly.

Ming Ci leaned against the door, his cheeks hanging low.

“Ming Ci… hehe… Ming Ci…”

The dreamy murmur appeared in his mind again, the tone still low and strange, but the lingering sweet tone reflected the monster’s joyful mood at the moment.

He turned on the lights in the living room and slowly opened his left hand, staring at the scarred scab in the palm.

The monster is now nesting in the wound, prompting it to heal rapidly.

Because it received positive feedback from the host for the first time, and also ate too much in one go, it fell into a human-like drunken stupor, sticky and calling out the host’s name.

Unconsciously, it secretes a special substance.

The scent molecules quietly diffused, and Ming Ci faintly smelled a hint of rich and peculiar fragrance.

Faint yet lingering, with an indescribable feeling.

Ming Ci was accustomed to the sensory confusion caused by the monster and didn’t pay much attention to this scent.

Tonight, he had another task to do – to deliver Xiao Mi’s cat food, litter, and supplies to Chen Xiu’s house.

A moment later, Ming Ci arrived at the door of room 303, carrying bags and packages, and knocked on the door.

Chen Xiu’s youngest daughter heard the noise and ran over to open the door, curiously looking up at him.

The kitchen exhaust fan buzzed, and Chen Xiu wiped her hands on her apron. She peered out and said with a smile, “Ming Ci’s here, come in! I just finished cooking. Stay for dinner. Lan Lan, quickly greet Gege.”

The little girl crisply called out, “Gege.”

*gege – elder brother/ term for older male not necessarily biologically related

Ming Ci stepped in, bending down to put everything in the hallway and politely declined, “No need, Aunt Chen, I have something to do later.”

“Eating won’t take much time. You’re too polite, child.” Chen Xiu took off her apron and walked out, “Alright, I won’t force you. Lan Lan, bring Xiao Mi over for your brother to see.”

Upon hearing this, the little girl ran into the bedroom, and soon she was seen coming out slowly, carrying the fluffy calico cat in her arms.

“Gege, look at Xiao Mi.”

Ming Ci looked down at Xiao Mi, his fingers twitching slightly, wanting to reach out but restraining himself.

However, just as he glanced at it up close, the originally docile and lazy Xiao Mi suddenly arched its back and puffed up its fur, jumping out of the little girl’s arms and darting under the bed in the bedroom.

The little girl paused, at a loss, and said, “Mama, Xiao Mi ran away!”

“Xiao Mi has been good all day. Why isn’t it listening now?” Chen Xiu was also surprised, waving her hand, “Lan Lan, let it stay under the bed.”

Ming Ci knew exactly what had happened to Xiao Mi. He withdrew his gaze and stepped out of the door.

“Aunt Chen, Xiao Mi’s things are all here. When the cat food runs out, you can buy online with this brand. It’s not good to feed it human food too often. Cats can’t handle too much salt, which can cause hair loss and even kidney failure… Oh, and remember to close the windows. Cats like to jump out of the window, and leaving it open can be dangerous.”

At this point, he pursed his lips, showing a slightly embarrassed smile, “Sorry for the trouble, Aunt Chen.”

Chen Xiu tidied up the hallway while speaking, “No trouble at all. Xiao Mi is now our family’s cat. Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of it.”

“Thank you, Aunt Chen.”

After Ming Ci finished speaking, he closed the door for her and turned to leave.

At ten o’clock that night, after taking a shower, Ming Ci lay on the bed playing with the folding knife.

The scenes from the day replayed in his mind, and he stared at the blade with dark eyes, a hint of coldness overflowing from his heart.

Did Ming Hui really treat him like air by letting the creditor come directly to the house to move things?

Dealing with those people all day, knowing full well they weren’t good characters, yet still bringing them home… What kind of father was he?

“Ming Ci?”

The monster suddenly called out to him.

Ming Ci paused his thoughts, then tossed the knife onto the bedside table and turned off the light.

Forget it, he didn’t have the energy to think about Ming Hui’s mess now. The priority was dealing with this monster.

Although he didn’t get a response, the monster continued speaking on its own: “Ming Ci, why… take care of Xiao Mi?”

“Xiao Mi, cat, Ming Ci, take care of? Ming Ci, touch it, hold it, feed it, why?”

Ming Ci felt annoyed and coldly replied, “Because I like it.”

This was yet another unfamiliar concept.

The monster fell into even greater confusion and pressed on: “Like? Ming Ci, like… what is like?”

Ming Ci ignored it and silently closed his eyes.

In the darkness, the monster kept murmuring to itself: “Take care of… like… Ming Ci…”

The faint and delicate scent gradually filled the entire room.